A juvenile Surf Scoter was discovered at Rutland Water a few days ago, another rare sea duck on an inland water. I decided to go and see it this morning (30th Dec) as it was another opportunity to observe a rare scoter at close quarters. Juvenile Surf Scoter are simply dark brown with several small […]
The two Velvet Scoters, probably a female and a first winter drake, were still present today at Staunton Harold Reservoir, South Derbyshire. This morning, I was fortunate enough to be taken out onto the water in one of the local Yacht Club’s Ribs and was able to get a few good shots of one of
This morning, 16th December, I decided to call in on my local patch at Staunton Harold Reservoir, as I often do before heading off to work. The last few days I’ve not been able to visit, due to business commitments and customer appointments. I held out little hope for anything good, as most days its
As the Dusky Thrush was still frequenting gardens and fields around the small Derbyshire village of Beeley, I decided to go back on Sunday for another viewing, in the hope of getting some better images. This bird is proving to be very difficult to obtain a really good photograph, despite a number of good efforts
The autumn of 2016 will go down in UK birding history as one, if not, the best periods for the finding of rare asiatic birds in Britain. A continuous stream of mouth watering vagrants seemed to be endless throughout September, October and November. Then just as all the birders thought, that’s the end, a Dusky
Sunday 4th December was a stunning day, crisp, blue skies and sunshine, a great day to play around with photography at one of my local birding patches. Melbourne Pool is an OK place for common ducks and gulls and there is also the chance of something else turning up. I really wanted to try and
It is looking like this winter will be another Waxwing Year, as many thousands of these beautiful birds have arrived into Britain during the last 6-8 weeks. Most of the big numbers are still located in Scotland and the NE Coastal areas, but smaller flocks have managed to arrive further south in recent weeks. A
Not done a great deal of late. Last weekend (6th November) I visited the North Norfolk coast to see, more than anything else, a large flock of Shore Lark. Apparently the flock at Holkham Gap had increased to 68 over recent weeks, making it one of the largest flocks in Britain for many years, maybe
